‘I feel alive again’ – Emotional Rafael Nadal left in tears after reaching sixth Australian Open final

Rafael Nadal insists he feels alive again after overcoming a foot injury to book his spot in Sunday’s Australian Open final.

The 2009 champion is into a sixth Australian Open final of his career after seeing off Matteo Berrettini in four sets, 6-3 6-2 3-6 6-3.

His victory comes less than two weeks after it was unclear if he’d even play in the first Grand Slam of the year given his poor preparations for the tournament.

The former world No.1 missed the second half of the 2021 season due to a foot injury and only made his return to the court at the exhibition Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Decembee and then tested positive for coronavirus in the lead up to Christmas.

Nadal admits he’s surpassed even his own expectations and the 35-year-old let out his emotions upon winning match point and shortly after he could be seen wiping his tears away with his towel.

<p lang=«en» dir=«ltr» xml:lang=«en»>Look how much it means to Rafa Nadal â¤ï¸#AusOpen | @RafaelNadal pic.twitter.com/pr9UokL1xS

‘The people from outside it’s difficult to believe, the people next to me [who] watched and lived my diary, conditions for the last six months, difficult to understand that I was able to play at this level right now so it’s difficult to explain,’ he said.

‘I feel lucky just playing tennis, I’m playing with a great tactical, positive feelings.

‘I feel a little bit alive again, attitude, the competitive spirit so yeah I’ve missed that feeling sometimes, I am enjoying it.

‘I know the pressure is not much for me now. I never believed I would have the chance to be where I am today so I’m just enjoying every single moment and of course I’m trying my best because I was in that semi-final so I want to to play the chance.’

Nadal will now take on either